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Re-rebuilding America

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EDITORIAL

“If you can keep your head while all those around you are losing theirs and blaming it on you…” is the opening line of Rudyard Kipling’s poem If.

“Make America Great Again” is the phrase that Donald Trump selected as his campaign slogan for the 2016 Presidential election and is again the slogan for the 2020 campaign. It is a phrase that has triggered those on the left and rallied those on the right side of the political spectrum. Is it entirely correct, though, as a history lesson of America?

What you feed grows

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What you feed grows, and what you starve dies. The idiom sums up life in a number of ways, from spiritual to carnal, from establishing habits to breaking them.

To many it speaks to one’s priorities – what you feed, support and make time for is most important. What you starve, discipline and keep under control will eventually shrink and wither.

Today’s application is a simple one. When considering Ennis, what kind of town do you want the Bluebonnet City to become?

Collectors/accumulators, what-ever!

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I really do not know in which category I fall, but I have been a “gatherer” of various things— aka [stuff] for a long time—so much so, my home is bursting at the seams. Maybe I fall somewhere between those collectors seen in “American Pickers” on TV, or maybe even some of those in the “reject line” on “The Antiques’ Roadshow”— but hopefully slightly less than a “hoarder!”

Some women can be so stubborn...

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“I guess I’m having my second childhood,” said my 90-year-old aunt in our telephone conversation this weekend. “I never had tonsillitis as a child but now I’m on my second week of antibiotics for what they’re calling ‘tonsillitis.’”

Since she has been homebound, I called to report what news I could think of, and to learn from her, too. We discussed the calendar, school starts, birthdays and anniversaries.

“I noticed that Tuesday was the one-year anniversary of Aunt Mary’s death,” I said.

She paused for a moment and then answered boldly: “No, it wasn’t.”

Why do we say that?

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Phrases are a wonderful part of our cultures. When I say phrases, I mean those catchy little collections of words we all say that adds color to our language. No, I am not talking about those four-letter words like “Golf”. Why did I say that? Because it is well known that the only reason that game is called “Golf” is because all the other four-letter words were taken. See. Things like that that we all say to add extra flavor to our speech.

Wise old men?

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In many past cultures, older men and women were traditionally asked by the younger generations to provide answers to life’s questions and problems. Often, it happened in a seated circle in the council hut with others gathered to listen and learn. Though women may have taken part, it was typically the oldest man who provided the sage advice and had the final word.

Of fall and winter flu

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EDITORIAL

Most Texans look forward to fall and winter. After a grueling summer of heat, with or without humidity, cooler temperatures and occasional rain is a welcome treat.

September 21 is the Autumnal Equinox and it heralds the official beginning of fall. Along with the cooler temperatures comes football season, high school, college and professional. High School football has been said to be the third largest religion in Texas. Some towns have signs that say, “Last one out, turn out the lights,” since practically the whole town travels to the away games.

Hooked on fishing humor

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It’s been said that a fisherman is a jerk on one end of the line waiting for a jerk on the other end of the line.

When it comes to sports humor, the leader has to be fishing. Baseball may be a close second, and I think a huge reason is the length of time anglers spend together on the lake. Hours and hours of quiet dialogue will coerce long suppressed jokes, stories and eventually leads to conniving about losing whoppers. After all, the farther away the lake, the bigger the fish that got away.

One giant leap

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In the wake of the beautiful and awe-inspiring coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, I have a horrible confession to make: I don’t remember seeing this historic event on television as it happened, live in 1969. It concerns me deeply: was I painting my fingernails in my lavender bedroom? Was I going around and around the Dairy Queen in a blue Chevrolet to see who was there, and to be seen? Was I using ModPodge on bottles and boxes and mirrors, as the 70s came into focus? I don’t recall.

Supporting the home team

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High school athletic events are the height of amateur athletics. There is a reason why communities across America turn out on Friday nights to cheer on their respective football teams.